Misbah Sinks the Ship Again as Pakistan lose T20 Series to England 27/2/2012

Absolutely disgraceful performance from Pakistan. Really annoying for fans to see Pakistan make a mess of chasing 130 in a 20 over game.

Misbah needs to seriously rethink his approach, every time he comes in, even if Pakistan are ahead of the required rate, he slows everything down trying to save wickets which wasn't even needed today, after steadying the ship he then gradually sinks it. Him playing in slow motion, means that the incoming batsmen walk into a pressure situation and they come in and press the panic button even harder. Misbah is digging a hole for them to jump in to. It's a shame because Misbah is a talented batsman and he has the ability to play positively if he plays his natural game, but for some reason he is constantly being over cautious and trying to save his wicket and in the process he slows the game down too much. Sometimes it is required because Pakistan have lost quick wickets and some steady batting is needed but the same approach cannot be applied to every single game and especially not in T20 Cricket.

Taking it to the end and then not being able to hit the big shots is something he has done too often. Why take it to the end all the time? If you come in and things are going well, then continue with the momentum, why slow things down and then strangle yourself. Especially with such an easy target like this one. Misbah has done it many times in the past, the World Cup Semi Final in 2011 against India is just one other example.

Hammad Azam should have come in a lot earlier, Afridi should have come in earlier, but they didn't get a chance to save Pakistan till it was too late, all because Misbah tried to convert the game from an easy one to a tight game without any real reason.

Umar Akmal needs to stay miles away from the Pakistan team, T20 or ODI, no space for players who perform once a year and never do it when the team really needs them. Umar Akmal has been in the side for a few years, he is young and talented but he rarely delivers a good performance, he needs time away from the international side which he should use to improve his attitude and lift his game. Misbah should only be Test Captain as his defensive approach has more value in that form of the game and he is doing well, he should continue playing in the ODI game and retire from T20 Cricket.

Afridi should be captain of the ODI and T20 side. Fielding has to improve and attitudes need to change, players need to be given some basic cricket intelligence classes so they have some kind of cricket knowledge in their big empty heads.

Posted in: Articles,Sport

Pakistani Woman Wins First Oscar for Pakistan

Filmmakers Daniel Junge and Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy posed with their Oscars at the 84th Annual Academy Awards in Hollywood, California, Feb. 26.
In forgotten rural parts of Pakistan, more than 150 women are disfigured annually by acid attacks, often by jealous husbands or families obsessed with honor.

The attacks are meant to mark the women for life as having failed to live up to a rigid code of honor that has more in common with Medieval values than the 21st Century.

After years of anonymous toiling, those who work in Pakistan to end this brutal practice have notched up some successes in recent months, including heavier sentences for acid attack perpetrators.

And on Sunday night, when Pakistani filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy accepted her Oscar for “Saving Face,” a documentary about a doctor’s efforts to reconstruct the faces of acid attack victims, the campaign got an unexpected shot in the arm.

“It’s highly symbolic. It’s a message of hope,” Valerie Khan Yusufzai, chairwoman of Pakistan-based Acid Survivors Foundation, whose work with victims features in the film, said of Ms. Obaid-Chinoy’s Oscar win.

Films don’t often change the world by themselves. But in this case, Saving Face appears to have caught a zeitgeist in which Pakistani women are starting to get traction in a fight for equal rights.

Ms. Obaid-Chinoy, 33 years old, alluded to this struggle in her acceptance speech on Sunday night, dedicating her award to “all the women in Pakistan working for change.”

The film, which was co-directed by U.S. documentary filmmaker, Daniel Junge, could also work to tackle a stereotype, held widely outside the country, that Pakistan is a quasi failed state.

Yes, the country faces enormous problems, not least the prevalence of acid throwing, which speaks to how tribal justice fills a legal vacuum in some rural parts of the country where women are less educated and have fewer opportunities. Only a fraction of acid attacks are successfully prosecuted.

It’s even unclear whether the film will be widely viewed in Pakistan, where documentaries, by Ms. Obaid-Chinoy’s own admission, are not popular.

But the film, which also charts one victim’s successful quest to get her husband convicted, shows how women, including victims, are fighting back and starting to achieve some results for their efforts, says Sherry Rehman, Pakistan’s ambassador to the U.S.

“Women are doing cutting edge things in this country, and for every few cases of oppression, which all South Asian countries remain challenged by, in Pakistan there is a woman who stands up and makes her community and her country proud,” she said in an email.

Acid Survivors Foundation says there are at least 200 recorded attacks each year, three-quarters of them on women or girls, but many more victims are scared to speak up.

In December, after intense pressure from civil rights groups, Pakistan’s Senate passed legislation that mandates a minimum 14 year jail sentence and a 1 million Pakistani rupee fine ($ 11,000) for convicted acid throwers.

That’s double the average time in prison that courts have handed down to perpetrators of such attacks in the past.

Of course, legislation is only part of the story. But rights activists say police are facing more pressure to register and investigate complaints from women who have been attacked with acid.

Ms. Yousufzai says so far this year police have begun investigations into six acid attacks, which represents 100% of cases that have been reported. In the past, police typically have launched probes into only a fifth of cases put before them, Ms. Yousufzai adds.

This is a big advance for campaigners, who long have criticized the police for pushing cases back into villages to be settled between families, a situation that helps perpetuate the violence.

Now, campaigners are hoping Ms. Obaid-Chinoy’s newfound celebrity will keep up the pressure.

The next battle? This year, activists are pressing for Pakistan’s provincial governments to pass draft legislation to guarantee financial compensation and other support mechanisms for victims of acid attacks.

Source: The Wall Street Journal India

Posted in: Articles,News

PML(N) Political Meeting held in Birmingham by Raja Noman Kamal of Dadyal

A meeting was held by Raja Noman Kamal of PML(N) in Birmingham (UK) on 20th February 2012. Raja Nomal Kamal is from Dadyal and is a young politician who organised this meeting to discuss the issues facing Overseas Kashmiris, and also the new branch of PML(N) Birmingham which is to be announced in the near future. The meeting was attended by (from right to left above): Chaudhary Mohammed Saeed, Raja Noman Kamal, Mohammed Younis (President PML(N) Nottingham), Parvaiz Bhatti, Raja Rifaqat, Khawaja Adrees (Member of Organising Committee PML(N) Midlands), Chaudhary Younus Chathrvi (Organiser Midlands PML(N)), Raja Amjid, Raja Maqsood and Raja Shahpal.

Posted in: News,Photos

Chaudhary Afsar Shahid Minister of Dadyal visits Dingle

    Photos by Noor Dean of Dingle and USA

Posted in: News,Photos

Q'uran and Sports Car Story

A young man was getting ready to graduate college. For many months he had admired a beautiful sports car in a dealer's showroom, and knowing his father could well afford it, he told him that was all he wanted.

As Graduation Day approached, the young man waited signs that his father had purchased the car. Finally, on the morning of his graduation his father called him into his private study. His father told him how proud he was to have such a fine son, and told him how much he loved him. He handed his son a beautiful wrapped gift box.

Curious, but somewhat disappointed the young man opened the box and found a lovely, leather-bound Quran. Angrily, he raised his voice at his father and said "With all your money you give me a Quran?" and stormed out of the house, leaving the holy book.

Many years passed and the young man was very successful in business. He had a beautiful home and wonderful family, but realized his father was very old, and thought perhaps he should go to him. He had not seen him since that graduation day.

Before he could make arrangements, he received a telegram telling him his father had passed away, and willed all of his possessions to his son. He needed to come home immediately and take care things. When he arrived at his father's house, sudden sadness and regret filled his heart. He began to search his father's important papers and saw the still new Quran, just as he had left it years ago. With tears, he opened the Quran and began to turn the pages.

As he read those words, a car key dropped from an envelope taped behind the Quran. It had a tag with the dealer's name, the same dealer who had the sports car he had desired. On the tag was the date of his graduation, and the words...PAID IN FULL.

How many times do we miss ALLAH blessings because they are not packaged as we expected?

Posted in: Islamic Articles